The sender comes from  Kurtuvėnai, a small town of 256 people. The card is a aeriel photo of  Tytuvėnų vienuolynas ( T ytuvėnai Monastery).  Tytuvėnai Monastery was established in 1614 and dedicated to the Assumption of Mary. It was de-established (secularized) in 1832 by tsarist authorities as the friars were accused of anti Russian activities. It did reopen a few decades later, but was closed again during Soviet occupation. It was used as a warehouse in 1969 causing much of the interior art to deteriorate.  There are architectural elements of Gothic, Renaissance, and Baroque styles. Inside there are ornate altars and sculptural details. It has been on Lithuania's UNESCO Tentative List since 2006.  Today the monastery serves both as a museum and a pilgrimage site, notably as a component of the Pope John Paul II Pilgrim's Way. A drop of John Paul II's blood is preserved within the complex. 

This is a photo of a member of the Offensive Guard of the Ukrainian Defense and Security Forces.  Kharkiv was the site of heavy fighting between Ukrainian and Russia forces in 2022. By February, the governor of the oblast declared that Russian soldiers were repelled from the area. In late February much of the south-east part of the city was destroy and on fire by massive shelling by Russian forces. UNESCO reported that 27 major historical buildings were destroyed.   In March, Human Rights Watch reported that on the fourth day of the invastion, Russian forces used cluster munitions in three areas of the city. Cluster munitions are meant to create a lot of damage without any precision.  By May, Ukrainian soldiers began a counter-offensive to drive the Russians out and back towards the border. By mid-May, Russia withdrew their forces from the city, but Russian artillery and rockets remained within range of the city and the city continues to suffer from shelling and miss...

This card had a customs declaration sticker on the front and I can't peel it off. The card has a drawing of a Xoloscuintle, which is a breed of hairless dog in Mexico. The sender says this dog is a common pet and a soul guide for the Aztec. The card also highlights 2 Noviembre die de los Muertos, which translates to November 2: the Day of the Dead.  The Day of the Dead is a multi-day holiday, usually celebrated on November 1-2, but sometimes on October 31 or November 6. Friends and family gather to pay respects to family and friends who have died. Celebrations are usually fun, humourus, and colourful, as funny stories and anecdotes are told about the deceased. Part of the celebration is to have a meal at the person's grave.  In 2008, the tradition was inscribed in the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity by UNESCO. 

The Struve Geodetic Arc is a chain of survey triangulations stretching from northern Norway to the Black Sea - 10 countries and 2820 km. This chain was established by Friedrich Georg Wilhelm von Struve between 1816 - 1855 to establish the exact size and shape of the Earth.  In 2005, the chain was added to the UNESCO World Heritage List.

Toruń  is an ancient city on the Vistula River and named a UNESCO Heritage Site in 2007. There are just under 202 000 residents.  Toruń has the largest number of Gothic houses in Poland, many of them with Gothic paintings or wood-beamed ceilings that can date back to the 1500s. Toruń also managed to avoid the destruction that befell many of Poland's old cities by the Nazi invasion and occupation during World War II. In Old Town, all of the important architectural monuments are originals, not reproductions as is the case in many Polish towns and cities. Efforts are being made to improve the condition and the external presentation of  Toruń's Old Town. Streets are being reconstructed to resemble their historic appearance. Toruń's botanical garden was opened in 1797. TKH  Toruń plays in the Polska Hokej Liga, Poland's top ice hockey pro league. They were founded in 1924 and won the Polish Cup in 2006. Their home arena is Tor-Tor and it seats 3200 spectators. There is a...

It's always exciting to get a card from a country that you haven't received one from yet. This card from Svetlana makes it 63 countries I have at least one card from.  Svetlana is Russian and is working in the oil and gas sector. She works with rig assets management and, as she puts it, "I'm based in Cyprus at the moment." I'm not sure how long a moment is, but it was a significant enough move to bring her husband and daughter. Her bio also states she is very interested in learning more about her grandfather's involvement in the Great Patriotic War (the Russian part of World War II). She says her grandfather fought against the Germans from 1942-45, and then finally returned home in 1947. Svetlana says she has been to Alberta in 2017, but doesn't specify where. If she is oil and gas there is a good chance she was in Calgary and Fort MacMurray. Hopefully she got some sight seeing time in the mountains, too. Svetlana is living in Paphos  Πάφος , which is ...

Ronaldo from Belo Horizonte sent me a card of  Igreja de  São  Francisco de Assis, which translates to Church of St. Francis of Assisi. Apparently the  curved lines of the church enchanted artists and architects, but scandalized the city's conservative culture. Despite its completion in 1943 t he church was not consecrated until 1959. For 14 years, the ecclesiastical authorities prohibited the chapel from providing Catholic services. Several local politicians either tried to get the church torn down, or modified with more traditional architecture, befitting of a Catholic Church. Ronaldo's card shows the mural on the church created by Roberto Berle Marx. In 2016 the church was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

From Minsk, Belarus, Lera sent me a card of the main post office which has a beautiful stained glass window of the Mir Castle. Its a great postcard that has a rounded corner on an otherwise standard postcard.  Mir Castle  is a historic fortified castle and a UNESCO World Heritage Site in Mir. It was built in the 16th century. During the Second World War, German forces used the castle as a Jewish ghetto, prior to their murder.